SEATTLE — Officials from Seattle, Portland, and New York City are filing a lawsuit over President Donald Trump’s threatened withdrawal of federal funds from cities that permit “anarchy."
The cities will file a complaint Thursday in Seattle over the so-called “anarchist jurisdiction” designation.
The lawsuit calls Trump's threats "offensive to both the Constitution and common sense," while saying that calling cities "anarchist jurisdictions" is an oxymoron.
The Justice Department last month identified the cities as three that could have federal funding slashed under a memorandum by Trump that sought to identify localities that permit “anarchy, violence and destruction in American cities.” The memo ordered federal agencies to send reports to the White House on how funds can be redirected elsewhere, away from the cities he named.
The memo stated, in part, "Unfortunately, anarchy has recently beset some of our States and cities. For the past few months, several State and local governments have contributed to the violence and destruction in their jurisdictions by failing to enforce the law, disempowering and significantly defunding their police departments, and refusing to accept offers of Federal law enforcement assistance. As a result of these State and local government policies, persistent and outrageous acts of violence and destruction have continued unabated in many of America’s cities, such as Portland, Seattle, and New York."
Seattle was the first city called out in the memo, and Trump specifically references what protesters called the Capitol Hill Autonomous Zone (CHAZ), which later became the Capitol Hill Occupied Protest (CHOP).
The president also mentioned the riots and protests in Portland, which have been ongoing, his office said.
For three weeks, protesters took over six blocks of the Capitol Hill neighborhood.
"Notwithstanding the fact that law-abiding citizens live and work in the invaded area, the local government effectively endorsed this lawlessness and taking of property by, among other things, abandoning the Seattle Police Department’s East Precinct building and forbidding the police force from intervening to restore order," the memo read.
Seattle Mayor Jenny Durkan previously said Trump's memo was the "latest attempt to distract from the fact that COVID-19 has infected over 6 million Americans, killed 185,000 people, and destroyed the American economy."
Washington Gov. Jay Inslee previously said the memo was "illegal" and also accused Trump of using it to distract from the impact of the coronavirus pandemic.
This is a developing story. Check back for updates.